The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1887-05-20
DAKOTA AS A noaES
Ls,ters and Testimonials from Governors
and Judges of the Great Terri ory--Per-
sonal Experienoes Tersely Expressed.

sonal Experiences Tersely Expressed.
AT the request of the Dakota department,
the following well known public men have
given their opinion in writing of their ex-
perience in Dakota. and of the advantages
offered to those seeking homes in the grow
ing West Coming from such high author
ity, these opinions possess great value, and
tell in few words what is worth volumes of
ordinary testimony. Gov, Church writes:
My experience in Dakota has been an
agreeable disappointment-When came to
the territory eighteen months ago, came
under the impression that was coming into
a country that was covered with snow six
months in the year several feet deep; into
community consisting, for the most part, Of
cowboys and Indians My experience upon
the bench, previous to being appointed gov
nrnor, was such as to bring me in contact
with all classes CT people throughout Cen
tral Dakota, the people OF which are rep
resentative of the entire territory. From
my personal observation l can safely say
that as regards the advancement Of the
country, it's condition and desrablliJy gen
orally, and as place Of residence, II is equal
to, and If everything were equal as far as
development, far superior TO the old Eastern
staaes Our people are of bright, energetic
class, the vast majority of whom are, COM
paratively speaking, young men and
women. As far as society Is concerned,
there is as fine a class of people scattered
over the farms and centered in the little
municipalities of our territory, as will be
found anywhere. There are large class of
in the older states who misunderstood the
true STATE of affairs in the Wes5, and have no
h. ind ont
which are held out to newcomers 1t seems
to me if the middle and working classes
thoroughly understood our people, and were
thoroughly aware of our rich soil and It's
vast agricultural advantages, they would
not hesitate Il moment in selecting between
the old home and the new ones TO be found
in Dakota We have all classes of people
among us; all nationalities are well repre-
sented Our towns are far ahead of the old
Eastern towns in almost everything. 1t Is
common thing to find in one of Dakota's
towns two or three national banks, all in
surance companies we'll represented, and
everything that represents business OF all
kinds far in advance OF towns hVe
times their size in the older states.
Such towns as Bismarck, jamestown, Grand
Forks, Fargo, Aberdeen, Watertown, Huron,
Sioux Falls, Mitchell Yanktop. Deadwood
and Rapid City will compare favorably with
towns of five times their size in Massachu-
setts, New York and Pennsylvania.
People seeking new homes cannot do
better than 20 come to Dakota The general
impression that we have cold climate; that
we are land of snow, is false one. We
have very little snow as rule in Dakota, as
Dakota is situated west of the snow belt,
and while there are high winds prevailing
and the mercury is low in the winter, one
does not feel the cold weather nearly so
much as they do In the Eastern States, on
account of the dryness of the atmosphere.
As for health, there can be no healthier
place than this. TO the farmers who are
working the worn-out lands of the East,
where they must manure and fertilize them
every year, Dakota would be an Eden. The
soil is rich and it will be years before it can
pe exhausted It has been demonstrated to
a certainty, by actual experience that timber
will grow upon these vast prairies. In the
elder portions of the territory, I have seen
some of the finest groves of young trees that
a man could wish to look at. left the ter
ritory for New York on the 2Sth of March
and at that time the farmers in the major
part of Dakota had almost completed their
spring plowing and had their spring crop in.
Upon my arrival in New York was surprised
to see, in the northern part Of the state, a
great deal of snow, and to such extent in
many places as to prevent plowing. Upon
my return on the 10Th of April, the country
presented but very httle difference between
Northern New York and Dakota
While was in the East I was continually
asked what our modes Of travel We're in the
territory, the general idea seeming to be chat
we either had TO travel on horseback or in q
wagon We have upwards of four thousand
miles of railroad in the territory and our
railroad facilities are rapidly increasing,
There is hardly q town of any Importance In
the territory that cannot be conveniently
reached by railroad communications There
is good feeling existing among our people
Of all classes, and they vie with each other
In striving to advance the true interests Of
the territory. Strangers are gladly welcomed
and treated in such a way that they cannot
help but feel that they are coming to coun,
try and among people where hospitality is
practiced as pleasure as well as a virtue.
WHAT Ex-aov. oRDwAY SAYS
A gentleman connected with one of the
Bismarck national banks recently met ex-
Gov. N. g. ordway in Washington, and re-
ports the governor as quite enthusiastic over
the boom which he is sure has started all
over the East in all classes Of Dakota prop
erty The governor said;
sThe boom which started In 1880 con-
tinued about three years before it reached
its height, and ! see no reason why the pres
ent movement should not increase and con-
tinun 9aarrnanpnfly Tyh ! raasnn whv in
Yestors are now trrning their attention to
Dakota is very plain. Rich farm lands are
much cheaper in proportion to their product
iyeness than in any Of the states and are
more accessible to Eastern investors than in
any of the other territories. while the min
eral lands in the Black Hills regions are Just